


Kiran's disastrous adventure!

by Pragmatist_Antithesis



Category: Fire Emblem Heroes
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Gen, Isekai, My First Fanfic, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, slight canon alterations
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-07
Updated: 2019-03-07
Packaged: 2019-11-13 08:36:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18028403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pragmatist_Antithesis/pseuds/Pragmatist_Antithesis
Summary: After a strange message appears on Kiran's phone, he is summoned into the world if Fire Emblem Heroes. What could possibly go wrong?A novelisation of Fire Emblem Heroes, down time in Askr included!





	Kiran's disastrous adventure!

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Worlds](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14233101) by [SillyFanboy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SillyFanboy/pseuds/SillyFanboy). 



> This first chapter is a bit on the long side because I want to get to the part where I can have creative freedom (which is rather difficult when you're in a tutorial level!) in as few chapters as possible. Don't expect future chapters to be anywhere near 7,000 words!
> 
> One other thing: I'll be using _italics_ to indicate Kiran's thoughts.

“Ah, the breeze here is so nice.” A teenager sat down on the side of Willen Lake. He had just strolled for two and a half hours to make it here, and every second of it was thoroughly enjoyable for him. The town of Milton Keynes is full of beautiful nature, from dense woods to calm plans. The town is also very peaceful, despite holding 250 thousand people within its gridroads. The calm scent of grass permeated the town’s many parks, while the low hum of the cars passing by was a constant reminder of the ever-moving life. Even when the sky was overcast, life outdoors was enjoyable.

The teenager was alone for now. After all, it meant there was no-one else to slow him down or disturb the peace. Allow me to tell you the tale of Kiran, and the chaos that awaits him.

**Before the game: A rest interrupted**

Kiran’s mind wondered towards getting home, _Phew, my legs are exhausted. I know my Jado session yesterday was intense, but I didn’t think I’d be regretting it already! I’ll probably need to get a taxi home if I proceed any further, so I should check if my phone still has data. Hmm, FEH should be able to connect to the internet while not downloading anything too big._

Kiran reached into his trousers’ front pocket, and pulled out his phone with a thumb and two fingers from his left hand. The phone itself is a simple Nexus 5. Old, but very reliable! He gripped it with his right hand, and pressed the power button with his right thumb. He swiped the screen up with his right thumb, and typed in a short password with his left index finger. He then swiped the screen right, and opened up FEH.

It was at this moment Kiran knew, he messed up. _Oh, blast! I forgot to turn the volume down. The title screen is very loud._ Kiran quickly tapped the volume button, then the top of the screen to open a small menu, then slid “media volume” down to mute. Kiran waited for the loading screen to fade. However, an error message shows up. Huh, I must not have any data. was his immediate assumption.

 _Hang on, that error message looks suspicious._ Kiran thought, while adjusting his glasses.

“Error 1531-241: REAL_SUMMON_READY”

In his surprise, Kiran flinched with his left hand, accidentally tapping a green “OK” button. _Oh well, it’s probably just there to dismiss the error message._

The button was not just there to dismiss the error message.

After pressing the button, the ground immediately below Kiran lit up in a pattern of white and gold. The light then rose up to surround him. In fear and surprise, he froze in place.

After the light surrounded Kiran, he was nowhere to be seen. A few bystanders gave surprised looks, but there wasn’t much reaction beyond that. Everyone there expected someone else to call the police, so why bother doing it themselves?

**Preface: “I summon thee!”**

After the light faded, a rush of cool air hit Kiran’s body. He was surrounded by strange architecture that seemed similar to the Greek buildings of old. The plants on the ground were short and an unhealthy shade of lime green, but managed to produce faint flowers in the arid stone. The smell of pollen was sharp and threw Kiran off, as did the sunny sky. _I’m not in MK anymore._

However, there was one more thing that was of more importance to Kiran: he wasn’t alone. Standing in front of him was a young woman with bright red hair. She wore a short white dress with gold patterns. More importantly, she was brandishing a giant axe! She excitedly said, “Oooh, you’re here? Then the ritual actually worked?” Kiran was utterly terrified, and instinctively retreated into his guard. He stood with his left foot forward, his left hand guarding his face, and his right hand on his cheek, ready to throw a punch. Both his hands were in loose fists.

The woman, who seemed to be cosplaying Anna from the Fire Emblem series, didn’t take any notice of Kiran’s total lack of composure, and continued to her speech. “Ahem… Oh, great hero, thou hast come so far to fulfil your role in out legend. For our kingdom now stands on the brink of ruin, and thou, and thou...” Anna’s act dropped slightly as she realised that poor Kiran was now both horrified and confused! “Hold on. Are you really our great hero? You don’t look like the thee-and-thou type.”

In response to this, Kiran squealed a faint “no” before regaining some composure and dropping his guard. “Wh-where am I? You said there was a ‘ritual’?”

Anna noticed that Kiran was confused, and she tried to affirm what he didn’t know. “What’s that? You want to know where you are? And how you got here?” Kiran nodded. “Fair enough, you’re in-”

Anna was then interrupted by an axe fighter. He wore golden scale armour on his chest, a simple set of black and green clothes that covered his body, and a large green cape. “FOUND YOU!” he shouted in a tone that further startled Kiran. He then rose his axe, and rushed towards Anna.

Naturally very annoyed, Anna cursed to herself, “Drat! How did one of these Emblians get here already?!”

Kiran, trying to ease the shock of having someone trying to kill him, decided to crack a joke, “He probably walked here. How else would he get here, using the bus?”

This infuriated the already frustrated Anna. “Not funny, and what in Zenith is a ‘bus’?!” However, she regained her composure, “Ugh, anyway. I’ll handle this somehow, so stand back!” She then ran east towards the axe fighter. After closing the distance, Anna drew her axe and charged at the fighter.

Kiran, seeing that the axe fighter had drawn his axe upwards (and therefore completely dropped his guard!), called out the word “low” to help Anna.

She got the message, and swapped her overhead swing for a sideways slash aimed at a weak point in the Emblian’s armour. The scales didn’t go all the way down to his legs, so the lowest row of scales and anything beneath it was very vulnerable. Exploiting this flaw, Anna’s silver axe sliced through the fighter’s kilt and the flesh beneath, splashing a nasty amount of blood all over the stone ground. The sheer pain caused by the axe fighter losing his private parts also broke his form, which messed up his counterstrike. Although the fighter’s axe did technically hit Anna, the edge alignment was ruined and Anna could easily shrug off the blow. She then took advantage of the way the axe fighter was collapsing, and went for an overhead strike to the back of the fighter’s neck, killing him instantly despite the blow going through his helmet.

Kiran successfully fought the urge to vomit, and walked towards Anna and the corpse. It was at this moment that the severity of the situation dawned on him. _Someone just tried to kill me, and now he’s dead because of something I said. I’ve just indirectly killed someone…_ Upon this realisation, Kiran started to feel incredibly guilty, and solemnly walked the rest of the way to Anna, staring at the mutilated corpse.

Anna, on the other hand, was just happy that she won the fight. “Whew, we took care of him!” However, she then noticed that Kiran was looking downcast, and asked what was wrong.

Kiran looked down at the corpse, and whimpered, “we just… We just killed someone.”

Anna lightly tapped Kiran on the shoulder, “Of course. If we didn’t, he was going to kill us. Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it.” _But getting used to it is exactly what I’m afraid of._

As Anna could not hear Kiran’s thoughts, she continued, “My name’s Anna: Commander of the Order of Heroes. We believe Heroes should live free. Our enemies, however, enslave them – the fiends.”

Kiran recognised the name “Order of Heroes” and quickly realised what was going on: _Hang on. Am I in FEH? Oh no, I have no idea how the story goes, it’s been months since I last actually played that game!_

Anna continued to introduce the game, though Kiran did stop paying attention once he knew what was going on. She mentioned how the gates connected her world to the worlds of the Fire Emblem games, mentioning Awakening. She also said that the soldier was of the Emblian empire, a kingdom at war with Askr. She then justified Kiran’s summoning by claiming desperation, and that he “just appeared out of nowhere.” Kiran rolled his eyes, but eventually managed to feign pity and tagged along.

After this, the two jogged towards a nearby road, with Anna leading Kiran.

Once the pair had reached a safe spot, Anna introduced Breidablik to Kiran. “First things first, I summoned you here with the divine Breidablik. That’s the name of the relic I’ve brought. It fires something out of it, but it doesn’t look like any bow I’ve ever seen.” Oh, right. She doesn’t know what a gun is. “The legend also calls it ‘the true key’ which, when raised up high, can summon the Great Hero who can fire it. That’s what I did, and you’re here now.”

Anna then handed Breidablik to Kiran, who immediately held it the right way, making sure to keep all his fingers on the handle (and not the trigger!). Anna then smiled at how Kiran seemed familiar with how to hold the weapon, “So it’s all yours now. Hopefully you can figure out how to use–“

However, it was at this moment that another Axe Fighter appeared to ruin everyone’s day. “There she is, get her!” he screamed, signalling an archer to move alongside him. The two soldiers looked much more of a challenge than the individual fighter, and Anna knew she was outmatched. “Drat. More of those Emblian soldiers. I can’t defeat them all by myself, and you aren’t equipped to help me.”

Kiran, who seemed to gain a burst of confidence after realising that this is a tutorial level (AKA an easy win), shook his head calmly. “No, Anna. I’m equipped. After all, I have Brehda- Braydab- Brighdab- Whatever it’s called!” Now knowing that he messed up his badass entrance, he cut his losses and fired the gun. It glowed with a bright yellow glean as it fired a multicoloured blast if front of Kiran.

Anna was utterly shocked (unlike Kiran), “What’s that?! That bright light, coming from...”

Out of Breidablik appeared a young man with a long, white ponytail. He wore a white blouse with blue sleeves. His black trousers were covered by blue plate armour, and there were red ribbons and tassels holding the outfit together. He introduced himself, “I'm Takumi, a prince of Hoshido and wielder of the divine Fujin Yumi.” He then relaxed into a smug grin, “Which makes me pretty useful, I'd say.” _Wait, Takumi?!_ _I could’ve sworn it was Virion who was summoned first!_ _Well, I now truly have no idea what’s going on…_

Anna was also surprised, albeit for a totally different reason. “How’d you do that? You summoned a Hero, Kiran! You just picked up Breidablik, and you’re already able to use it! But there’s no time to chat now. This Takumi and I need to get to fighting.”

Kiran, who was now somewhat shaken by the fact he just summoned the wrong hero, shook off the surprise and started commanding the heroes. “Takumi, move north-east, then shoot the axeman on your right. Anna, cut ahead of Takumi and finish off the axe fighter while he’s dealing with Takumi’s arrow.” The idea of basic strategy seemed natural to him, as he had experience with roleplaying games. The orders went off as planned, with the axe fighter easily falling to the overwhelming assault.

But, in his haste, Kiran failed to spot the archer, who was now aiming at Anna. _Oops._ Now panicking, Kiran screamed, “Anna, look out! Arrow fire!” Anna took notice of this, and raised her axe to block the arrow. Her block failed, leaving the arrow lodged in her armour. Luckily, there was no serious wound, as the armour successfully blocked the shot. This left Anna more angry than anything else, and she decided to take it out on the archer. “This one’s on the house!” she shouted in a playful tone while getting her axe ready to strike him. She leapt into the air, and slammed down onto his helmet, denting it. She then took a second strike to the side, breaking his bow and damaging the scale armour. Finally, she finished the archer off with a powerful downwards cut to the chest, shattering the scale armour and causing shards of metal to fly though his lungs. The second corpse collapsed onto the ground.

After stepping back, Anna leant on a nearby wall in celebration, and smiled at Kiran. “We won! And it’s all thanks to you, Kiran!”

Kiran blushed slightly, “I didn’t do much, you should thank Takumi. Why are you hyping me up anyway?”

“Why?” Anna justified, “None of us in the order can actually summon heroes.” Anna then teased Kiran, “Ha! I never doubted for a second that you were our Great Hero. You’re the one who will save our kingdom! Our order is small, but welcome to our ranks. Please, help us find more Heroes to assist us! Now that you’re here, I just know that we’ll win our fight against the empire, Kiran.”

Meanwhile, Kiran completely ignored Anna and patted Takumi on the back, “Good job out there. And sorry for calling you out on such short notice!”

Takumi flinched slightly at the sudden affection, and closed off his stance, “Y-you should be grateful I swooped in to save you!”

Kiran nodded in agreement, before letting Anna lead the way.

**Prologue: World of Zenith**

Anna held a map she was carrying with her, and started studying routes. “Alright, I think our safest bet would probably be to meet up with Prince Alfonse. We should be able to follow Ræöfell road North. To our right will be a forest path to Karlsfell village. There, we can meet up with the Prince.”

Kiran questioned Anna, though. “That sounds like a long way. Will we be able to make it on foot? I was on a six-hour walk when I got summoned, so my legs are exhausted!”

“That’s fine, as we’re not going on foot! Our carriage should be right there.” Anna pointed at a small brown shape in the distance. “We can get to Alphonse in about half an hour.”

The group of three ran towards the horse-drawn cart. It was made of wood, with two wheels, one on each side. The front of the cart had two long wooden poles which surrounded the two horses in front. The cart’s driver opened a door in the cart’s side, allowing the trio in.

“So your summoning session actually worked?” The driver asked, “Colour me surprised. Well, I assume I’m taking you three to the capital.”

“Not yet, we have to stop by Alphonse. I’m worried about him.” Anna said, “Quickly, please. We need to reach the Prince before he gets overwhelmed.”

The driver then pulled at a set of reins, signalling the horses to walk forward. The three heroes sat on some cushions in the back back of the cart. Kiran searched around for a seatbelt, before realising there wasn’t one. Oh, right. We’re not in my world. Well, I suppose horse-drawn carriages aren’t exactly fast enough to justify seatbelts anyway…

As the group had a short respite, they talked about various things while on their journey. Anna talked about the order of heroes in more depth, while Kiran and Takumi described their respective worlds. Although Emblian soldiers did try to attack the road, they were fought off by the Askran knights under king Gustav’s command.

Eventaully, the carriage reached its destination, the entrance to a thin forest path. Kiran and Anna hopped off and strode through the woods. The cool shade and soft, dank smell felt familiar to Kiran and relaxed him as he walked through the new yet familiar land.

The path ran parallel to a stream through the forest, before reaching a clearing. In the clearing, the stream joined up with a river, and there were bridges to cross the bodies of water. The soft atmosphere of a lake was pierced by a cold dread in an inviting yet eerie allure. There, they saw a young man with blue hair wearing a white suit with gold armour covering his chest. The man called out to Anna, before noticing the presence of Kiran. He first gasped in shock, before relaxing into a smile. “Who is this with you? Could it be…?”

Anna jumped around like a child high on sugar, “Yes, Prince Alphonse! The legend is true! I raised Breidablik and Kiran appeared. Our Great Hero is here...and can use the divine weapon too! As for what Breidablik shoots? It’s truly wonderful. It fires Heroes right out of it!”

Alphonse gawked at Kiran, “Unbelievable. So you’re our Great Hero, come to us from another world. “He then coughed to reagin his composure, and introduced himself. “I am Alfonse, Prince of Askr and member of the Order of Heroes. A pleasure to meet you. I’m sorry to ask this of you so soon after we’ve met, but I have need of your help. Our order is devoted to fighting the Emblian Empire, which invades worlds where Heroes are from.” He then opened his stance and raised his hands, inviting Kiran to acknowledge his introduction.

Kiran nodded. “Nice to meet you, your majesty. What do you want me to do?”

Alphonse continued his request. “The empire has newly taken over the World of Mystery.” _Mystery of the Emblem, right?_ “We need to make our way to the World of Mystery to free it! And, Commander Anna, there’s one more thing. I spotted someone odd with the soldiers near here.” _Zacharias..._ “A strange man. Not imperial soldier. Nor a Hero from the World of Mystery now under their control.”

Anna questioned Alphonse, “A strange man, you say? Did he seem allied with the Empire?” However, Alphonse couldn’t answer, as he was cut off by Kiran pointing at a pair of soldiers on the other side of the river in a panic.

One of the soldiers held an axe, and looked similar to the two other axemen Anna had already defeated. The second was a swordsman with red feathers and cape in his uniform, but he looked otherwise similar to the axeman. There was also a lancer with a blonde ponytail and blue feathers, who glared at the group of four from the other side of the stream. Kiran took a deep breath, and started giving orders. “Anna, move onto the bridge on our left. The lancer could hurt the Prince if we’re not careful! Alphonse and Takumi, advance towards the river and wait for the enemy to come to you.”

As the three fighters moved out, the enemies approached. Kiran saw the lancer get close, while the two men couldn’t get over the bridges. “Anna, brace for impact! Princes, get ready to strike!” Anna responded by holding her lance in a reverse guard. She effortlessly deflected the lance to her right, turning the lancer away from her. Anna then brought down her axe on the lancer, killing her instantly.

Meanwhile, Takumi saw an opportunity to strike the swordsman on the bridge, and loosed an arrow. He easily made his mark. Alphonse then followed up by moving past Takumi and pouncing on the swordsman, killing him too. While the fighting was ongoing, a masked man stared coldly at the slaughter in front of him.

Just the axeman remained. Kiran taunted him forwards onto the riverbank, and into Takumi’s range. Another arrow: another badly hurt fighter. Alphonse then retraced his steps to finish the job. With the exception of the masked man, no more foes remained. The masked man saw the situation quickly turning dire, and readied his steed to run away. However, Anna was having none of this and tried to ask the man’s name. She then recognised the man as one she saw earlier, and tried to ask for his identity.

Alphonse then followed up with way too much aggression, “Tell us, are you a soldier in the Emblian army? If so, then you stand on the side of evil! The empire shouldn’t be in the worlds of the heroes, let alone attempting conquest!”

The masked man laughed at Alphonse. “Oh really? And I suppose you expect us to close the gates too? In your dreams.” His horse then swiftly galloped away.

Alphonse tried to chase him while shouting, but was too slow. He quickly realised he wasn’t going to make it, and stopped, sighing. “Damn fellow, he’s gone.”

Anna turned to Kiran, and brought up the role of Askr in the outrealms. “Those gateways he mentioned, they connect our world to al those where heroes live. The royalty of Askr, like Alphonse, have to power to open gateways; and the royalty of Embla have the power to close them.” Alphonse then added to Anna’s speech, “Long ago, our two families worked in harmony to open and close these ways to other worlds, but then Embla began using its power for evil, leaving all the gates open. The empire began invading those worlds. We cannot slam the gates shut, only they can.”

Kiran looked on in fear. How does one stop an empire that spans several worlds? Anna picked up on his, and reassured him, “We can fight them, however. That’s why we formed the Order of Heroes, to contain the Emblians. Now, let’s hurry to the world of mystery!” She then turned to Alphonse, “Your sister has been on a scouting mission. I fear that she may be in danger.” With that, the four-strong group rushed back through the forest. They returned to the carriage, and Anna ordered the driver to go the World of Mystery’s portal.

After a short journey, and calmer introductions between Alphonse and the group, the carriage arrived at an outrealm gate. There was a small skirmish to actually get to the portal, but the Emblians guarding the portal were clearly new, and got ambushed. Three were killed by Alphonse, three by Anna, and two by Takumi, but one escaped and ran to a nearby secret base. Anna assumed she wouldn’t be able to get reinforcements, and didn’t try to give chase. The group has bigger problems to deal with than an enemy deserter! After sheathing their weapons, the group walked through the portal.

Without a second thought, the four leapt through the portal, and arrived in Macedon. As Macedon is at a high altitude, the air was significantly colder than in Askr. This gave Kiran and Takumi a slight shock, which was endearing to Anna and Alphonse. However, they had no time to be staring at the now shivering boys in pity, as they had to find Alphonse’s sister!

The trek up the mountains wasn’t as hard as the group expected, as Sharena didn’t make it very far. After spotting her in similar clothes to Alphonse and Anna, the group waved towards her. She waved back, and sprinted towards the group. “Commander Anna! Brother! What took you so long?”

Alphonse apologised for the delay, “Sorry Sharena, we had to battle our way here. How ha-”

It was at this moment, Sharena noticed Kiran and Takumi. “Who’s this with you?” She than saw Breidablik in Kiran’s left hand and smiled from ear to ear, “Oh my, you’re holding the divine relic, and it’s all aglow! Are you our great hero?”

Kiran nodded while twirling the gun in his hand. “That’s what Anna sad, and I just summoned Prince Takumi of Hoshido so...”

Sharena jumped for joy and hugged Kiran, much to his distress, “Our group had hoped beyond hope that you might come to save us!” Kiran flailed his arms about to signal for help.

Alphonse facepalmed, “Why is she always like this?” He then cleared his throat and continued. “Please, calm yourself, Sharena. This is Kiran. As it turns out, he’s a talented tactician. We’re in good hands.” Kiran sighed, _Because you didn’t see me almost blunder Anna’s life to the archer in my second battle!_

The revelation of Kiran’s tactical ‘genius’ caused Sharena to lose control of her hype. “But... that's amazing. And, Great Hero, you're as great as I imagined. I'm going to be your number-one fan.” It was at this point that Sharena remembered that she is a princess, and should act as such. She let go of Kiran, who filled his lungs with glorious air. “Oh! My manners have gone right out the window. I'm Sharena, Alfonse's darling little sister.”

Alphonse tried to get Sharena to remember why she was here. “Alright, alright. Just tell us, what is the situation here?”

Sharena’s positive mood was broken as she was thrust back into the real world. “Simply put? Absolutely dreadful. The empire has taken control of a hero from this world. She swoops through the skies. A fearsome figure, all in red.”

Kiran raised his hand to his chin. “That sounds like Princess Minerva. If my understanding is correct, she leads the pegasus sisters, so her entire team should be weak to archers. Takumi, if we have to fight her, you’re going to have to carry a bit more than your weight. Apologies in advance!”

The white-haired prince smiled in response, “No problem. I’ll show you the precision of the Fujin Yumi!”

Alphonse sighed, “I hope we don’t need to get into a battle in the first place.”

“I know” Kiran said, “It’s just that, from the stories I’ve heard, Minerva isn’t the type to go terrorising her own land.”

Before Alphonse could respond, a red figure rose above the mountains. Below it, a large green beast, casting an immense shadow over the cliffs. The roar of air as the beast thrusted its wings shattered the rocks below. The red figure then leaned forwards, and the beast rushed over a lush valley towards the group. The grass swayed in the shockwaves while petals were ripped from their flowers. The beast then roared, causing a wall on the valley’s edge to start crumbling. The beast then landed in the valley, crushing the wildlife below. A dark iron axe was raised from the beast’s saddle, its sharpened edge gleaming in the sunlight. The group could see the axe’s weilder cast in blood red: Minerva. She stared down upon the group solemnly. Two pegasi flew behind Minerva, restoring the light. Their riders having long, green hair and short, blue hair. Finally, a child in a white dress with red hair similar to Minerva’s stepped out from a mountain passage, holding a glowing staff. The staff’s energy surrounded the girl, and restored the flowers to full bloom. She stood near Minerva and smiled. Minerva smiled back.

_Those must be Palla, Catria and Maria. Finally, a battle against someone who isn’t a generic!_

Minerva roared over the valleys, “Begone, outsiders! I am Minerva, princess of Macedon. I’ll warn you once: return to your world. I am bound to serve the Emblian Empire. The imperial princess, Veronica has given me an order: to attack a kingdom near her empire. I have no time for the likes of you!” The beast, a wyvern, roared again at the group, chomping at the bit to ravage the Askrans.

Alphonse stared back at the scarlet princess, “I am Prince Alphonse, of the very kingdom you plan to attack. I beg you, put down your weapons. We of Askr have no desire to battle you noble heroes.”

“I am under contract to obey princess Veronica. There is only ONE way to release me:” Minerva shouted back at Alphonse, “prove you are stronger.”

Alphonse sighed, “Must we resolve this with a battle?” The rest of the group nodded solemnly, before getting into their battle stances.

The first thing Kiran noticed was the damaged wall. He ordered Sharena and Takumi the smash a hole in it, while Alphonse beat on another part of it. Anna stood back, waiting for all hell to break loose. Half of the wall collapsed, causing rubble to bounce off the ground in a dusty pile of rubble, the sound of rocks smashing shook the area. Fortunately, Sharena managed to jump back from the wall before it fell. As the dust settled, and the light from the valley could be seen, Minerva’s party was in full view, getting ever closer. However, this gave Takumi the perfect opportunity. He sprinted past Sharena, and loosed an arrow at Minerva. It struck her wyvern right in the head, killing it instantly. Minerva, now not having a living wyvern to ride on, fell out of the sky and landed on the ground in a splat.

“Sharena, Takumi, charge!” Kiran shouted, seeing an opportunity. “Alphonse, Anna, you can stay here.”

Sharena then stepped in front of Takumi, shielding him from impact. Alphonse and Anna stood and waited, watching the two pegasi swoop down to Sharena.However, Sharena was more than prepared for the onslaught. Catria attacked first, and the two girls traded blows with no clear winner. Any mild scratches they got were very nonlethal. However, Maria approached Catria from behind, and restored her health. Catria’s wounds stopped bleeding, and she was ready to fight once more. Meanwhile, Palla tried to flank Sharena and slash at her exposed head. However, Sharena saw this coming, and ducked the blow. She then held her lance up, ready for the pegasus to fly onto it. The lance’s tip ripped through the pegasus’s underside, causing it to lose flight. Palla toppled off and crashed into a cliff.

Finally, only Cartria and Maria remained. Takumi loosed an arrow, hitting Cartria in the head. Her body slumped backwards on her now confused pegasus. Maria froze in fear, seeing her allies all gone. However, she was contractually bound to stand until the end, so she couldn’t raise the white flag. However, she did make life very easy for Sharena by standing still, waiting for the end. Sharena closed her eyes and then stabbed Maria in the heart, ending the battle. Once she fell, a brilliant gold light enveloped the four dead Macedonians, bringing them back to life.

Palla and Catria both panicked, trying to find their bearings, before realising the battle was over. Maria started to cry, thinking she was still in battle, before Sharena helped her back onto her feet. Finally, Minerva got up and extended a hand to Alphonse. “Well done, Prince Alphonse. You have proved strong enough to break our contract with Veronica. And so, we are free once more. I give you my oath that we will not attack your kingdom. Farewell.” She then got ready to mount her wyvern and ride off into the daylight.

Maria also turned around ready to leave. “Next time you’re in a battle with a healer, please do not fell her last. I was terrified when I saw Minerva fall onto the ground. But still, you won, so all’s well that ends well!” _She earned her cheer back quite rapidly for someone who just died!_ “If you ever need my help, be sure to come and visit.” The group then went back through the valley, leaving the Askrans to celebrate. Alphonse and Sharena congratulated Kiran on his tactical prowess. However, a messenger owl was about to spoil the group’s party.

Kiran picked up the letter.

_Urgent report: Emblian soldiers are attacking the capital! We can’t hold out much longer, so send help immediately. ~Matthew_

He then looked up at the group in despair, “Commander, we’ve been had. The Emblians used Minerva to get us out of Zenith, and now they’re at our doorstep.”

The four heroes turned back the way they came, and rushed to the portal. Kiran, who was significantly less athletic than the rest of the group, tried to keep up. As they entered the portal, they felt a nice rush of warmth as they re-entered Zenith. They dived onto the carriage, and ordered the driver to ride back to the capital at a gallop. As they sat in the accelerating carriage, all they could so is wait in fear, imagining what could have happened in their absence.

**Meanwhile, in the capital…**

The situation in the capital was dire. Houses were burning, their occupants slaughtered where they stood. Only three heroes remained at the castle after Minerva’s distraction: Raigh, Matthew and Virion.

Raigh knew the Order of Heroes’ defensive force wouldn’t be able to hold out much longer. He pushed out a flurry of wolf spirits from his dark tome, each one felling an Emblian soldier. The spirits went straight through the Emblians’ armour and burned them from the inside out. However, it wasn’t anywhere near fast enough, and Emblians still approached the castle. The castle guards tried their hardest, and repelled the remnants of the attack, but at the cost of several lives. The next wave would not be so easy to defend against.

Virion had his own post to watch, and was also busy picking off soldiers one by one. His job was to shoot down all of the Emblian fliers and mages, ensuring air superiority of Askr’s pegasi. However, and Emblian wyvern rider got too close, and cut him down with her axe. She then moved on to Raigh, and felled him too. However, an Askran archer was able to gain enough distance from her to get ready, aim and shoot her out of the sky.

This left only Matthew, who really wasn’t cut out for taking on an entire army. Instead of foolishly trying to take on an army alone, he instead opted to sow the seeds of chaos and let the Askran army handle the rest. He planted fire-tome bombs in the shadows, set off magical flares, and killed soldiers seemingly at random. This caused the Emblian army to panic, thinking they were infiltrated by dozens of spies. As they rapidly turned inwards on their own ranks, the Emblians were unable to notice an encroaching Askran division, and were quickly wiped out in a swift massacre. However, he could not stay hidden forever, and eventually found himself impaled on the end of a lance.

And yet, the three heroes had still done enough to defend, as help was coming. A carriage drifted into the city walls at breakneck speed, before skidding to a stop. Alphonse, Sharena, Anna, Takumi, and Kiran leapt out of the carriage. Breidablik flashed three times, causing the bodies of Raigh, Matthew and Virion to glow faintly. Soft lights rushed in tandem back to the castle. The group were horrified to see the barren battlefield, but were able to regain their composure and effortlessly slice through the remaining Emblian soldiers. The stench of blood disgusted Kiran, almost to the point of throwing up, but he held it in, and could direct the group. An injured axe fighter managed to force his way past Sharena, and tried to attack Kiran, but was kicked to the ground. He tried to get up, but Kiran was ready to deal a knockout blow with a jumping cross punch. The Emblian forces were wiped out, and the group could now turn around and focus on the attack’s leaders.

The Askrans saw the Emblian army. However, they were stuck at a chokepoint in the city walls. Two cavaliers and two footsoldiers stood ready to rush through the wall and retake some land. Behind them, a girl who looked no older than twelve commanded the army. Alphonse scowled at the child, for she was Princess Veronica. She surrounded herself in toxic gas, wasting away the plants and animals that dared get too close to her. She left a trail of barren, lifeless mud behind her as she walked through the lush fields of Askr. She made a wry smile as she commanded her army, “Scurry, scurry little heroes. Steal for me; spread destruction. Kill all those who stand in your way...” Her avaricious motives plagued her every move, “Once this kingdom falls, no one will oppose me. Every hero, in every world: they’ll all be mine! Every. Last. One.”

However, Alphonse was having none of this! Shouting at Veronica, he readied himself in a battle stance.

“Oh, it's you.” Veronica rolled her eyes at Alphonse, “And after I went through all that trouble to arrange your playdate.” She then noticed Kiran, who held Breidablik “Now, who are YOU, stranger? You have that silly relic. Then you must be the legendary summoner. No matter. It simply means that you must be the first to die.” She then smirked and got the attention of one of the cavaliers, “Oh...Xander!”The cavalier, who was in heavy armour and weilded as sword, acknowledged Veronica’s request.

Alphonse was shocked at Xander’s presence, “Oh no! She has Xander, one of the most powerful heroes in the World of Conquest!”

Sharena then comforted Kiran, “Don’t worry. We’ll protect you.” Kiran smiled back at her, _I hope I’ll be safe…_

Kiran then looked at the city wall, and thought of a strategy. The first order of business would be to take out the lead solder, an infantry archer. Takumi was ordered into the gap in the wall, blocking it. Sharena and Alphonse took positions either side of Takumi, while Anna stayed back for now. Sharena also gave Takumi some words of encouragement, which were appreciated deep down, though Takumi would never show it! Kiran then flashed a very well known medieval gesture involving who fingers, which ticked off the archer. He rushed forwards, loosing an arrow at Takumi. However, in his anger, his aim was not true, and the shot barely scratched Takumi’s clothes. Takumi retaliated with a powered up bolt that killed the enemy archer in a single blow.

But in the meantime, the other soldiers approached at an alarming pace. Xander was now ready to strike, and rushing for Takumi. Kiran ordered Takumi to retreat, and for Sharena to step forward into the gap in the wall, while Anna slowly marched forwards. They were ready for the charge, and Kiran signalled them to hold position, which Sharena’s lance pointed firmly forwards. Xander charged at Sharena, but was out-ranged by her lance, and could barely reach her with his stubby arming sword. However, the other cavalier, a troubadour, was able to catch up with Xander, and restore some of his health with her staff. Sharena then got an opportunity to attack and, despite Xander’s armour and the troubadour's healing, Sharena’s power and speed overwhelmed the cavalier in four devastating hits. Next, Alphonse moved past Sharena, cutting down Xander’s panicked horse, and slashed at the troubadour.

Anna also advanced on the troubador, but she did not attack. “You don’t want me to defeat this healer yet?” She questioned Kiran’s orders, but Kiran replied, “Right now, the troubadour is blocking the path of that swordsman, who out-ranges you.” Anna nodded in response.

The swordsman Kiran mentioned finally caught up with the group, panting from having to sprint to keep up with the cavaliers. This exhaustion gave Alphonse the perfect opportunity to strike, injuring him badly. The troubadour tried to restore the swordsman’s life, but it wasn’t enough. Seeing the situation turning dire, Veronica ordered a retreat. In the final turn of battle, Anna finished off the troubadour, while Alphonse defeated the swordsman. Xander was revived by the broken contract, but then immediately turned back to Veronica, instead of reconciling with the heroes. However, with Xander in retreat, the battle was won.

The Askran trio shouted at the now retreating Emblians, but they had no time nor patience for angry Askrans, and quietly retreated. The group then headed back to the capital to assess the damage. It wasn’t as bad as they first thought! Although some housing on the outskirts of town was destroyed, most people managed to hide away from the conflict. Now, the only battle going on was a group of young boys playfighting, imitating the techniques of the Emblians. As the heroes walked calmly through the streets of Askr and towards the Order’s Castle, Kiran was fascinated by the blooming markets that were capable of growing something from nothing. From his world of big business and monolithic town councils, something this informal and unregulated seemed impossible, and yet, it pleased him.

Or maybe that was just the smell of food.

Noticing that Kiran was getting distracted by the food stalls, Sharena eventually picked up on the hint and helped Kiran buy a portion of a hog roast. Sharena was now very much on Kiran’s good side, his pure smile stretching from ear to ear as his primal urges were satisfied. The tender meat slowly melted away in Kiran’s mouth, while the cracking provided some much-needed crunch. Its warmth healing Kiran much better than any cleric could. With renewed vigour, Kiran finished the walk back to the castle.

After that slight detour, the group arrived at the castle, and opened the gates. Kiran is now a fully fledged member of the Order of Heroes!

**Author's Note:**

> Bleh, writer's block sucks! I have a brilliant plan for defeating Surtr all the way in Book II but that's not going to come up until about chapter 15. Meanwhile, I have no idea what I should do to actually get to Book II. Oof.


End file.
